Poverty and hunger are top-of-mind problems today in the wake of Covid-19. Without creative ways of keeping agricultural and associated industries up and running, starvation will be a deep-rooted problem for some time to come. The IoT ecosystem, which can be defined as the connection between machines, devices and people, is one of the most efficient ways to accelerate solutions in agriculture. The ability to generate, collect data and analyse data also means that agriculture enterprises can maximise production outcomes. Making the most of IoT opportunities and linking smart devices requires access to a network footprint enabled with narrowband IoT capabilities and this is where LoRaWAN solutions can step in. This will support extensive coverage with low power consumption.

MikroTik’s LoRaWAN solutions provide cost-effective, secure, bi-directional, and long-range communication between multitudes of gateways and sensors. Its wireless signals can reach across great distances, delivering tiny packets of data to and from multiple low-power node devices, allowing for battery life that can last several years. Data can take a significant amount of guesswork out of farming and smart agriculture can really help an already developed agricultural sector in South Africa to meet the challenges of food generation. Livestock tracking, smart irrigation, level monitors for liquids and grains, smart pulse sensors, thermostats, and more are part of the endless possibilities. The truth is that telecommunications and agriculture are not worlds apart, but essential platforms in the food chain.

The increase in ICT affordability, adaptability and accessibility mean that IoT can also be used in rural areas and ICT can improve the livelihoods of rural farmers which will have a direct and indirect contribution to alleviating hunger in this country. Through robust end-to-end encryption, a secure and collaborative LoRaWAN IoT network can be built that can contribute towards helping build local agriculture into a profound breadbasket for this country.